Why Every Little Girl In Louisville Is Being Told 'You're Not A Princess'

A private school in Louisville, Ky., is tired of teenage girls acting like princesses, and they're not afraid to let them know.

All-girls Catholic School Mercy Academy, however, is not ruining girls' fantasies just because it can. There's a message of empowerment included under blunt statements:

Mercy Academy

"This message empowers them to move beyond that whole fairy tale idea and to write their own story in life," the school's principal Amy Elstone told NBC's Today.

Mercy Academy worked with the agency Doe-Vawter on the campaign. Chief creative officer David Vawter told Mashable that an all-female team designed the promotion, and that they wanted girls to feel self-sufficient.

Mercy Academy

Principal Elstone knew that the campaign could be risky, since many parents support the fantasy by treating their daughters like princesses. It's become a traditional part of an American girl's childhood, promoted relentlessly by Disney. Disney has only recently extended their signature line of princesses to include an African-American and Latina heroine due to popular demand.

But by breaking this magical fantasy for girls before they enter high school, hopes Elstone, they can realize that "they're so much more."

The school has a student body of 550 and has its ads throughout the city.

Elstone said that their students love the campaign. "They said it is exactly what a 13- and 14-year-old girl needs to hear."